What you need to know
- Google's Pixel Buds app has appeared in the Play Store, hinting at an imminent release
- Pixel users have slammed it with 1* reviews for automatically being installed on their phones.
- The Pixel Buds will set you back $179 when released.
Hinting at an imminent launch of Google's Pixel Buds, the firm has released an eponymous app to the Google Play Store (via 9to5Google). It doesn't do much at the moment (as no one has any actual Pixel Buds to pair it with), but it'll presumably enable you to manage your Buds and its features when Google gets around to shipping them.
The Buds app supports any Android device from 6.0 and above, though you'll probably want to be using a much newer device if you're buying a pair of true wireless buds.
Interestingly (or predictably) the Pixel Buds app appears to already be pre-installed on Pixel phones, most likely as an extension of the settings app. It's not something that users are fans of, with the applet racking up a slew of 1-star reviews just for having the audacity to exist on their devices without active consent.
To address some common complaints from the reviews, the app doesn't take up much storage, coming in at 16.76 MB on my Pixel. It does appear to be uninstallable via the Play Store, though the app details page only lets users disable it. Ultimately, it doesn't seem to be too big a deal all things considered, but it's a bit of a Songs of Innocence situation from Google. Users just want control, and they aren't fans of it being wrested from them for what appears to be product pushing.
The Pixel Buds will set you back $179 when they release sometime pretty soon.
Google Pixel Buds hands-on: True wireless earbuds with ambition
